Cover image courtesy of Trackside Photography
Could you afford a juvenile winner this weekend?
There will be $11.02 million worth of 2-year-olds running in juvenile races across Australia on Saturday, with almost half of that value - $5.2 million, to be precise - lining up for the 1100-metre opener at Rosehill Gardens. Including emergencies, 65 acceptances were sold at public auction for a grand average spend of $169,538 per yearling, although you could expect to pay a wide range of prices.
| Rosehill Gardens | 1100 | 14 | Sequista ($100,000) | Caesar ($800,000) | 1 | $400,685 | $5,205,000 |
| Flemington | 1600 (Listed) | 11 | Bermondsey ($2000 weanling) | Arcora ($225,000) | 6 | $73,000 | $365,000 |
| Flemington | 1200 | 8 | Blethyn ($120,000) | Street Artist ($470,000) | 2 | $298,333 | $1,790,000 |
| Pinjarra Park | 1300 | 10 | Cape Leeuwin ($25,000) | Flash Dancer ($280,000) | 3 | $98,714 | $691,000 |
| Sunshine Coast | 1000 | 18 | Earn To Burn ($7000) | Formula Rossa ($340,000) | 3 | $66,367 | $995,500 |
| Gawler | 1200 | 11 | Bargain Boy ($1500) | Galileo Gold ($130,000) | 2 | $52,500 | $472,500 |
| Wyong | 1300 | 16 | Frosty Bangers ($6000 weanling) | Sixties ($350,000) | 6 | $150,100 | $1,501,100 |
Table: Purchase price scales for Saturday's juvenile runners
At the cheaper end, Bermondsey (Hanseatic), who will line up for the Listed Taj Rossi Series Final at Flemington, could have been picked up for $2000 as a weanling at the 2023 Inglis Great Southern Sale. He repaid that investment 10 times at his first start when running third in the Listed Blue Diamond Preview (colts & geldings).
Even cheaper than him is the aptly named $1500 Magic Millions Adelaide Yearling Sale graduate Bargain Boy (Graff), who will debut over 1200 metres at Gawler.
On the other end of the scale, you would have needed 400 times that amount of capital to secure Caesar (Capitalist) at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale last year. Having won both of his trials to date, he is one of six debutants lining up at Rosehill, where the average price per starter is over $400,000 for those sold at auction.
Caesar | Image courtesy of Georgia Young Photography
On the Sunshine Coast, talented filly Formula Rossa (Spirit Of Boom) would have set you back $340,000 at the Gold Coast; she was city-placed on debut and a metropolitan winner at her second start.
Fairytale victory possible in the Winx Guineas
Since Winx (Street Cry {Ire}) launched her 33-straight winning streak in the race a decade ago in 2015, only one filly has won the G3 Winx Guineas, and that was Baccarat Baby (Casino Prince) in 2019, the year before the race was renamed in honour of the mighty mare.
Six fillies will try to turn the tables this year, with Matthew Smith’s Millie De Lune (Puissance De Lune {Ire}) a leading chance; a winner over 2000 metres two starts ago, she drops back to the mile after running fourth at 1800 metres at Rosehill two weeks ago. Leading New South Wales jockey and regular rider Ashley Morgan shares her trainer’s faith in her, and has made the trip north to ride the filly.
Millie De Lune | Image courtesy of Sportpix
Smith has expressed confidence in the filly’s performance on the wet - her recent win was on a Heavy 8 surface - and is hoping for a better tempo this start.
“It was ridiculous the way that race was run, but she’s going super,” he told the Brisbane Times on Thursday. “Back to a mile has got to be a query, but I think she’s still learning how to race.”
“Back to a mile has got to be a query, but I think she’s (Millie De Lune) still learning how to race.” - Matthew Smith
Zousain filly Whomsonever, trained by Kurt Goldman, is hunting for a third straight win when making the jump to Saturday company; while it’s a leap in class, the filly also relishes the wet, having put on a good front-running performance to win her most recent start over 1550 metres on a Heavy 8.
The biggest threats from the colts and geldings are Chris Waller’s well-rated gelding Barbray (Zoustar), who is highly favoured with the punters, and Paul Shailer-trained Mister Bianco (Zousain) who is attempting four straight in the same colours that Winx wore to victory. Owner Peter Tighe is over in the states currently, but the gelding will be his first runner in the race since Winx herself, so to see Magic Bloodstock’s silks cross the line first would be particularly special.
Mister Bianco | Image courtesy of Trackside Photography
Who will get the fairytale ending in this winter carnival; can a filly secure the Winx Guineas for the first time in six years, or can Peter Tighe win with a wink to his superstar mare?
No stopping the Zoustar train
With his first Champion Sire title well and truly in the bag, Widden Stud’s Zoustar could spend July simply having a rest - but if anything, he will be one of the most active sires in the country on Saturday, with 31 acceptors across Australia and a Northern Hemisphere-bred runner in Hong Kong.
Zoustar | Standing at Widden Stud
Waller-trained 3-year-old Barbray will represent him in the G3 Winx Guineas if Waller chooses to start him (at the time of writing, he has no assigned jockey), and Bjorn Baker-trained gelding Thunderlips makes his first attempt at stakes level since last year’s Listed Canberra Guineas when he jumps in the Listed Winter Cup at Rosehill Gardens. He has hit fantastic form lately, winning three from his last four starts.
Baker’s racing manager Luke Hilton told RS Newswire that the 4-year-old relishes the wet - which is a good thing given New South Wales’ current weather patterns.
“He went great on a dry track last week, and back on a wet track is going to be an advantage to him,” Hilton said.
Thunderlips | Image courtesy of Sportpix
Thunderlips will be joined by veteran campaigner Astero, who will turn eight in August, and down in Flemington, 4-year-old mares Hearcomesthestar and Inhibitions will have a tilt at the Listed Santa Ana Lane Sprint Series Final for Zoustar. Hearcomesthestar is the outsider to the field, but trainer John Moloney believes she’s a genuine shot at achieving black-type.
“When she ran fourth at Flemington last start in the Benchmark 90 (over 1420 metres), they didn’t run that much slower than they did in the straight six (furlong) handicap,” Moloney said. “If you scale it back on weights and measures, it means she would have been competitive in that under the weight scale that she’ll carry on Saturday.
“If you scale it back on weights and measures, it means she (Hearcomesthestar) would have been competitive in that (six furlong handicap) under the weight scale that she’ll carry on Saturday.” - John Moloney
“She’s in good order, so why not?”
Winner of her last two starts, Duchess Zou will line up for Ciaron Maher in the Listed Creswick Stakes on the same card, for her first shot at stakes level. The 3-year-old filly won her most recent start by four and a half lengths at Geelong.
Hearcomesthestar | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
Back at Rosehill, well-bred juvenile Hillier, the second foal from G2 Moreton Cup winner Pretty in Pink (Sebring), will line up in the opener, and Prestar, a grandson of G1 Coolmore Classic winner Regal Cheer (Arena), heads to the $85,000 Bruce McLachlan 2YO Classic at Sunshine Coast.
She’s An Artist taking mums syndicate on super ride
When 3-year-old filly She’s An Artist (Trapeze Artist) lines up for the Listed Creswick Stakes on Saturday at Flemington, she will have a posse of school mums cheering her on to record her third straight win. The Sursum Corda syndicate, which owns 20 per cent of the Ciaron Maher-trained filly, consists of 20 women who took their first foray into racing two years ago with bloodstock agent Louis Le Meteyer of Astute Bloodstock.
What started as part-joke, part-spur of the moment idea for the women to have a reason to keep in touch has turned into purchasing shares in the daughter of Widden Stud’s Trapeze Artist when Le Meteyer paid $175,000 for her at the Inglis Melbourne Premier Sale in 2023.
She's An Artist | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
“We'll be there on Saturday making a lot of noise, I'd imagine, hopefully anyway,” Sursum Corda member Megan Burges told racenet. “We had boys who finished school together two years ago. When we were getting towards the end of the school year, we said wouldn't it be great to find a way to stay in touch.
“It was a bit of a joke at the start, I said ‘why don't we buy into a racehorse' and then it got legs.”
“I'll be watching,” Le Meteyer said, although he will have to be content with watching from Deauville in France. “She's the $1.60 favourite. She's only little and the two weeks backup could be a bit testing for her, (but) Ciaron wouldn't race her if she wasn't right and she's a filly with a lot of talent.”
Louis Le Meteyer | Image courtesy of Inglis
The filly won on debut by five lengths at Bendigo in late May, then took out a Flemington handicap two weeks ago by three and three quarter lengths. She will face off again with Fieldelo (Deep Field), who ran second to her last start, and stakes-placed Bridal Waltz (Snitzel), who finished third in the same event.
“When you see the joy a good horse can bring to people, it's quite infatuating," Le Meteyer said. “There's probably a total of 30 owners in the horse and they're all having an amazing time.”
“When you see the joy a good horse can bring to people, it's quite infatuating.” - Louis Le Meteyer
Egan looking to double up at Flemington
Billy Egan scored a double at headquarters a fortnight ago to help Patrick and Michelle Payne secure a four-timer, and he will be back on deck on Saturday in the hopes of riding another double. He retains the ride on promising juvenile Buccleuch (Peltzer), bred and owned by the Taits of Twin Hills Stud, who will be attempting to score a first stakes win for his sire in the Listed Taj Rossi Series Final.
Buccleuch | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
“He's ticking over nicely,” Egan told racenet on Friday. “He surprised (us) how well (he won last start). He's putting it together and I'd say there's still good more improvement in him, maturity wise.
“He's (Buccleuch) putting it together and I'd say there's still good more improvement in him, maturity wise.” - Billy Egan
“I can't see why (the mile) would be (an issue), (it’s) only his fifth start, so we'll find out on the day.”
He will also take over the reins on veteran campaigner Jimmy The Bear (Jimmy Creed {USA}), who has won two of his last three starts to take his record to 10 wins and over $1.1 million in prizemoney. The pair line up for the Listed Winter Championship Series Final.
“Patrick has looked after him so well, like he does with all his older horses,” Egan said. “(He’s) a really genuine horse with a good attitude, so you knew he was going to do something like this.”
Jimmy The Bear | Image courtesy of Racing Photos
Current favourite Buccleuch will jump from barrier seven and will carry 2.5kg more than his nearest rival, Godolphin’s last-start winner Bayou Music (Street Boss {USA}), whereas Jimmy The Bear has drawn wide in barrier 14.
